ES2824275T3 - Controlled Motion Carton Feeding or Forming Machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A machine (10) for forming a cardboard box from a cardboard blank (B) in a hopper (H), comprising: at least one pusher (14) including a collector (16) for picking up the cardboard blank from the hopper and associating the cardboard blank with it with at least one pusher (14); and a motion controlled track (12) for moving the at least one pusher and picker along a path of travel to a stationary position to engage the cardboard blank in the hopper; characterized in one or more actuators (18) located in said stationary position, said one or more actuators being operable to move said collector in a linear direction and coupling and removing said cardboard blank (B) from the hopper (H), when the pusher is located in said stationary position.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Controlled Motion Carton Feeding or Forming Machine

Field of the invention

This disclosure relates to carton making techniques and more particularly to a carton feeding or forming machine using a controlled motion.

Background

Machines for forming cardboard boxes from blanks, and then delivering a product to load into the cardboard box, are well known. Typically, the carton is formed from a blank during a "pick and place" operation using a machine known in the vernacular as a "rotary feeder". Rotary feeder versions can be found in US Patent Nos. 4,881,934 and 8,047,530, just to name two examples.

Although these types of machines work well for their intended purposes, picking up and forming the carton blank in a rotating environment requires a sophisticated arrangement of cams, gears, connections, etc., and hence engineering considerable effort to develop and effort to maintain. An individualized control or independent adjustment of the particular structures used to pick and place the carton is not normally possible in this type of arrangement, which can lead to complications, especially when handling different sizes of cartons. The same is normally true for corresponding machines used to deliver and then load a product into the shaped cartons, for example EP 1 530 541 B1, the loading of which sometimes requires reorienting the product for insertion into the carton. cardboard from an open side before sealing.

A further carton forming machine known from DE 102012 209987 A, which discloses a machine having pushers and catchers for picking up a cardboard blank from a hopper while a controlled motion track advances the pushers to along a path of travel. This machine allows each tappet to be actuated independently, however it requires that an actuator be provided for each tappet to effect independent movement.

Accordingly, there is a need for improved carton feeding or forming machines that avoid any or all of the above-mentioned limitations, and perhaps others that have not yet been identified.

Resume

In accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, a machine is provided for forming a carton from a carton blank in a hopper. The machine comprises at least one pusher including a catcher for collecting the cardboard blank from the hopper and associating the cardboard blank with the pusher, and a controlled movement track for moving the at least one pusher and catcher to along a path of movement to a stationary position for the coupling of the cardboard blank in the hopper, characterized by one or more actuators (18) located in said stationary position, said one or more actuators being able to section to move said picker in a linear direction and engaging and removing said cardboard blank (B) from the hopper (H) when the pusher is located in said stationary position.

The collector may comprise at least one vacuum cup for coupling the cardboard blank, the vacuum cup being mounted to the pusher by a bracket including a vacuum source for supplying a vacuum pressure to the vacuum cup. A closure may be provided to lock the collector in an initial position and a rotary link may be provided to deliver gas to the holder.

The track may include a curved portion corresponding to the location of the hopper and a linear portion.

A take-out conveyor may be provided to receive the cardboard blank during forming, the take-out conveyor being located opposite the linear portion of the track. A plurality of pushers can be provided. The motion controlled track is adapted to control the movement of each pusher to stop at the hopper. In one embodiment, the pusher comprises a first pusher, and further includes a second pusher having an actuator to move in a linear direction for engagement and removal of the cardboard blank from the hopper while the pusher is in. stationary position.

The track may comprise a curved portion corresponding to the location of the hopper and a linear portion. A take-out conveyor may be provided to receive the cardboard blank during forming, the take-out conveyor being located adjacent to a transition from a track return path to a forward path. The removal conveyor may comprise tabs to aid in the constitution of the carton from the cardboard blank during transportation along the linear portion of the track by the combined action of the tabs and the pickup.

A method of forming cardboard boxes from cardboard blanks is also described. The method comprises collecting a cardboard blank from a hopper in a linear direction using a stationary pusher associated with a continuously moving track, adapted to control the stationary pusher independent of another pusher associated with the track.

The method of forming a carton from a carton blank further comprises: (1) conveying the carton blank along a curved portion of the conveyor while applying suction to the cardboard blank; and (2) constituting the carton along a linear portion of the conveyor while maintaining suction on the carton blank. The method may further include the step of collecting the cardboard blank from a hopper located along a curved section using suction. As can be appreciated, the machines and methods described above can be used together or separately from each other.

Brief description of the drawings

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a continuous motion device for a cardboard box forming and feeding machine;

Figure 2 is a side view of a carton feeding and forming machine including the continuous motion device of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a partially sectioned top view of the machine of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged portion of the view of Figure 3;

Figures 5-14 are sequential views of the forming and feeding operation using the disclosed machine with continuous motion;

Figure 15 is a side perspective view of a carton loading machine including a continuous motion device; Y

Figure 16 is an enlarged view of a part of the machine of Figure 15.

Description

Reference is now made to Figure 1, which shows an overall perspective view of one embodiment of the carton forming machine 10 in the illustrated embodiment, the machine 10 includes the track 12 that supports one or more pushers 14. Each pusher 14 in turn supports a conveyor, which may comprise a suction device, which may selectively include drivable vacuum cups 16. Although not all pushers 14 are shown with the structural arrangement in Figure 1, it should be appreciated that they may all be identically constructed. The cups 16 that serve as the conveyor couple the cardboard blank B into a hopper H (Figures 2 and 5), which may be located along, opposite or above a curved portion of the track 12 corresponding to the path return (that is, where the conveyors go from forward motion along the upper end of track 12 to the lower end). Once engaged, the cups 16 through the associated pusher 14 (and through the suction force provided) advance the blank B to a position for constitution in a carton C (possibly including assisting in the constitution process, and also possibly followed by additional transportation for product loading purposes, as outlined in more detail in the following description).

The nature of track 12 is such that pushers 14 may be individually advanced or supported at any point along an endless path of travel, and at a selected speed, thus providing a measure of controlled movement (which may include a lack of it). Track 12 thus creates a "no gap" arrangement (ie, there is no set amount of space between adjacent pushers 14. A particular arrangement of such track 12 is distributed by Rockwell Automation, Inc. under the trademark ITRAK. Continuous motion arrangements are described in US Patent Nos.

8,896,241 and 6,876,107, as well as US Patent Application Publication Nos. 2014/0331888 and 2014/0265645.

Therefore, referring back to Figures 1 and 2, as well as Figures 3 and 4, it can be appreciated that each pusher 14 can be advanced along track 12 to a "pick up" position to select the next blank B in line from hopper H. To do this, one or more actuators 18, such as linear actuators (two shown, one per side), can be associated with another pusher 14 to advance a bracket 20 supporting the vacuum cups 16 to engage blank B (note action arrow A and cam 21 in FIG. 4 for association with a follower 20b connected to support 20). Thus, the carrier or cups 16 and support 20 coupled with the actuator 18 can therefore be considered to form the collection means.

Supplying a negative pressure or vacuum to the cups 16 (which can be achieved by using a rotary union to supply compressed air through the supply line 24 to a vacuum generator (Venturi) associated with the support 20 to create the desired vacuum) , the cardboard blank B can be engaged and the actuator 18 retracted to pick up the blank in a safe, unrepeatable and highly reliable manner. Utilizing the controlled motion feature of track 12, pusher 14 can be paused at the pickup point to ensure proper engagement is achieved.

As shown in Figure 3, a selectively movable closure 26 may be associated with each pusher 14 and actuator 18 that is part of the particular collection means. This closure 26 can be used to ensure that the bracket 20 remains held in the retracted condition during continued transportation, except when actuation is desired. The closure 26 may be movable in a transverse direction, and may pivot to associate with a pin or other portion of the bracket 20.

As should be appreciated, the arrangement provided means that the blank B can be driven from the door associated with the hopper H in a purely linear motion. This is not normally possible by using continuous rotary feed arrangements using cams and gears to effect the picking operation, since stopping or stopping is not possible. Once the cardboard blank B is attached and removed from the hopper H, the corresponding pusher can continue to advance along the curved portion 12a of the track 12 to rotate and reorient the blank for possible purposes. Constitution. As noted, the halt or stop may be momentary, and you only need to perspire for as long as it takes for the cardboard blank B to move away from the hopper or other support.

It can further be understood that the linear movement is in the radial direction when the hopper H is located along a curved portion of the track 12. A line corresponding to the linear movement is therefore generally orthogonal to a line tangent to the curved portion. of track 12. Of course, if hopper H were located along a linear portion of track 14, such as the upper portion or the lower portion, the line corresponding to the linear motion could be generally orthogonal to a line parallel to the transport direction of the pusher 14 along the linear portion.

Figures 5-14 sequentially illustrate the complete sequence of the carton picking and shaping operation with respect to engagement of a selected pusher 14. In Figure 5, the retraction of the cardboard blank B by a pusher 14a is shown. This pusher 14a is movable along track 12 such that the not yet constituted cardboard blank B associated therewith engages a feed structure, such as a leading tab L on an adjacent take-off conveyor. , which initiates the constitution (figure 5).

As noted, pick-up of blank B may occur above a midline of track 12 (i.e., along the upper curved portion), to allow cardboard blank B be formed with the help of the movement of the pusher 14 around the rest of the curved portion, and finally to the lower face of the track 12 along the linear portion 12b, as shown in figure 12. Part B The cardboard blank possibly forms the cardboard box C in an open condition and ready to receive the product, while being simultaneously engaged by the flange L and the vacuum cups 16, which can be released at the point of constitution by interrupting the pressure of emptiness. During the last part of the sequence, a back T-tab can also be used to help square the cardboard box C being created and complete the forming process.

As contrasted with previous feeders and formers that rely solely on continuous rotary motion, it can be seen that this machine 10 uses controlled motion technology to allow more precise carton handling during picking and packing. constitution, and a consequent control of the timing of the events required to complete the constitution sequence. The resulting gapless arrangement can be used with a variety of different carton sizes (lengths in particular) without making any mechanical adjustments to the machine 10 (but of course possibly alternating the relative positioning of the tabs L, T to adapt the corresponding carton length). The arrangement also allows the pushers 14 to be actuated at variable speeds, which may be desirable when transporting cardboard blanks for constitution. This is simply not easily accomplished or is perhaps even possible using known rotary feeder arrangements that include continuous rotation (as opposed to controlled movement).

Although different shapes can be used (such as, for example, circular) it can also be appreciated that the track 12 shown is oblong. Thus, it includes curved portions 12a, as discussed above, as well as linear portions 12b (see FIG. 5) along which the pushers 14 move, including in a dependent position during the constitution sequence. As a result of this arrangement, and as can be understood from Figures 5-14, a pusher (such as pusher 14b) can advance with the carton C during engagement with the tongue and thus help ensure that the constitution is reliably achieved.

During continued transportation along the linear portion 12b of the track 12 corresponding to the tabbed removal carrier, the vacuum cups 16 may continue to actively engage and apply a suction force to the cardboard blank during part or all of the constitution sequence. This can be advantageous no only in terms of helping to provide the strength for the constitution, but also to ensure that it is achieved in a consistent, reliable manner. The corresponding linear portion 12b along the opposite side of track 12 also provides a location where pushers 14 can be moved out of the way awaiting actuation for the next picking operation (referred to as "park positions" in Figure 1). . The pushers 14 can also be accelerated to return to the park position once the carton C is formed. Once the constitution sequence is complete, it may also be desirable to load the now constituted carton C with product. This can be accomplished using an adjacent product delivery machine 100, an example of which is shown in Figures 15 and 16. Machine 100 also includes a track 112 to provide controlled movement for individual pushers 114 (i.e., the pushers can move independently along the track at a particular speed (or not). Track 112 as shown includes an upper elongated portion 112b that forms a forward path, as well as portions 112a curved to return pushers 114 to the forward path.

Each pusher 114 can be adapted to receive and support a product during transportation. In the illustrated embodiment, the pusher 114 includes a conveyor, such as a bucket 116, to accomplish this function. Bucket 116 can be mounted on pusher 114 for relative rotation, and can have an open top as well as open ends to receive product.

As can be understood from the right hand side of FIG. 15, the bucket 116 may initially be oriented with one open end facing an input feed conveyor 118, which in turn delivers product to it. Each pusher 114 can be momentarily stopped at a delivery point, and a retainer 120 (such as a vertically held linear actuator) used to ensure product is retained in or on bucket 116 before being advanced along it. along track 112 (possibly with an acceleration to close any gaps created by the delayed action). Advantageously, the controlled movement provided by track 112 also allows the flow of pushers 114 to be controlled to correspond to the feeding of the product on conveyor 118, which may be random.

With product on board, pusher 114 can then extend along upper linear portion 112b of track 112 to a remote point for delivery to the open end of carton C (see Figure 15) associated with machine 10 (or a different machine, such as a conventional rotary feeder arrangement with a corresponding take-off conveyor). As can be appreciated, when the machines 10, 100 are moving in parallel, the bucket 116 in the condition described above is generally orthogonal to the direction of the carton C.

In such a case, it should be necessary to reorient the bucket 116, which can be accomplished using a device, such as a turner 122 (such as a slotted or "Geneva" wheel 124 and a corresponding fixed cam follower 126, as described above. shown in Figure 16) with the bucket 116 reoriented in this way (shown as a 90 degree counterclockwise turn), the product can then be delivered through the open end of an adjacent carton (such as using a pusher (not shown) to push the product into place). The now filled cardboard box can then be sealed and thus completed. Along the return path of track 112, a turning or tumbler device (not shown, but substantially identical to cam arrangement 122) may be provided to return bucket 116 to a position to receive product from the conveyor 118 at an input feed point, such that the sequence can be repeated continuously.

As should be appreciated, the tracks 12, 112 described above are shown to include a particular number of pushers 14, 114 (six in Figure 1, nine in Figure 15). However, the number of pushers provided may vary depending on the particular application (and could typically be higher on machine 100, since there could probably be a desire for continuous product transport). As can be seen, the use of controlled movement also allows the pushers 14, 114 to be stopped at any point along the return path to await actuation after they have been brought together to couple a carton or product, respectively. . As noted above for carton forming machine 10, pushers 114 can also be controlled to regulate their relative spacing, depending on the size or length of buckets 116 used.

Claims (12)

1. A machine (10) for forming a cardboard box from a cardboard blank (B) in a hopper (H), comprising: at least one pusher (14) including a catcher (16) for picking up the cardboard blank from the hopper and associating the cardboard blank with at least one pusher (14); Y a motion controlled track (12) for moving the at least one pusher and picker along a path of travel to a stationary position to engage the cardboard blank in the hopper; characterized in one or more actuators (18) located in said stationary position, said one or more actuators being operable to move said collector in a linear direction and couple and remove said cardboard blank (B) from the hopper (H), when the pusher is located in said stationary position. The machine according to claim 1, wherein the collector comprises at least one vacuum cup (16) for coupling the cardboard blank (B), the vacuum cup (16) being mounted on the pusher by means of a bracket (20) including a vacuum source for supplying vacuum pressure to the vacuum cup. The machine according to claim 2, wherein the collector further comprises a closure (26) for locking said support (20) in a retracted position. The machine according to claim 2 or claim 3, further including a rotary joint to deliver gas to said support. The machine according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the track (12) comprises a curved portion (12a) corresponding to the location of the hopper and a linear portion (12b). The machine according to claim 5, further including a removal conveyor for receiving the cardboard blank during constitution, the removal conveyor being located opposite said linear portion (12b) of the track (12) . The machine according to any of claims 1 to 5, further including a take-out conveyor for receiving the cardboard blank during constitution, the take-out conveyor being located adjacent to a transition from a return path of track (12) to a forward path. The machine according to any preceding claim, further including a plurality of pushers (14), the controlled movement track (12) adapted to control the movement of each pusher to stop in the hopper. The machine according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein said take-out conveyor comprises tabs (L) to assist in the constitution of the carton from the carton blank during transportation to the along said linear portion (12b) of the track (12) by the combined action of the tabs and the catcher. A method of forming cardboard boxes from cardboard blanks, using the machine of any of claims 1 to 9 comprising: collecting a cardboard blank (B) from said hopper (H) in a linear direction using said pusher (14) in said stationary position, said pusher being associated with said controlled movement track (12) adapted to control said pusher independent of another pusher (14) associated with the track. The method according to claim 10, when dependent on claim 9, further comprising the steps of constituting the carton from the carton blank during transportation along said portion (12b) linear track (12) by the combined action of said tabs (L) and said collector (16). 12. The method according to any of claims 10 or 11 when dependent on any of claims 5-9, further comprising the steps of: transporting the cardboard blank along said curved portion (12a) of said track (12) while applying suction to the cardboard blank; Y constituting the carton along said linear portion (12b) of said controlled motion track (12) while applying suction to the carton blank.